Griswold, Norwich, and Sprague are designated by the state as "distressed" communities.

Griswold and Norwich have joined Sprague on the state Department of Economic and Community Development's 2015 list of 25 "distressed communities," and town officials are looking to leverage that negative designation into more funding assistance from the state for economic development and school programs.

The DECD ranked all 169 Connecticut towns based on criteria that include per-capita income, poverty and unemployment rates, and the percentage of the population with a high school diploma. The percentages of growth in the areas of job creation, population, and per-capita income were also factored into the ranking, as was the age of available housing, especially the percentage of pre-1939 structures.

Sprague has been on the list since 1999 and Norwich returns to the list after a 4-year hiatus. Griswold has not been on the list since 2001.

The "distressed" designation "is not a black mark against any community. It's a reflection of what's going on in our communities, and it allows us access to more state resources," said Sprague First Selectman and State Sen. Cathy Osten.

Over the years, Sprague has received "a ton of infrastructure grants" that have financed bridge and road repairs, new sidewalks, open space improvements and Americans with Disabilities Act accessibility projects, she said.

"It gives our town the opportunity to apply for improvements…. where we would not otherwise be in the running," said Osten.

Griswold First Selectman Kevin Skulczyck said the designation will create some opportunities to apply for state funding for a number of development projects.

"We're going to go after every funding source known to mankind," he said. "We're going to take this on and make it right for those in our community who are bombarded by taxes."

Although it would mean stepping away from the state-funded Small Town Economic Assistance Program (STEAP) grant, Griswold would now be eligible for Urban Action funding designated for distressed communities, Skulczyck said. Monies from these grants could be used to improve infrastructure such as water, sewer, and gas lines in order to attract and develop industry in town.

"That's going to be our priority," he said.

According to John Rappa, principal analyst from the state Office of Legislative Research, distressed communities are also eligible for open space and brownfields remediation funds. In addition, community housing development corporations in the distressed towns have a higher income cap for state-financed housing projects.

Norwich has also been identified as a Targeted Investment Community (TIC), which qualifies the city for additional economic development funding, including up to 90 percent eligibility for Manufacturing Assistance Act funds.

Griswold Superintendent Paul Smith said that the school district hopes to use that designation to its advantage when it makes the case for Educational Cost Sharing (ECS) grants.

"That would be a great place to start," he said.

Smith said that recent legislation has aimed at increasing the state funding allotment to towns which were claiming less than half of the state funding for which they qualify. But, he said, the plan has backfired, substantially increasing the state funding levels for some wealthy towns while not sufficiently filling the gap for poorer towns, especially in eastern Connecticut.

"Every town needs money, but it wasn't based on high need," he said.

As a result, towns with a high percentage of students who qualify for free or reduced-price school lunches were getting short shrift, said Smith.

"This side of the state is not feeling the recession easing up," he said. "Right now, the town gets 84 percent of what it's due to get from the state, and that's been the norm for the last few years. Something's wrong with the funding formula. Our taxpayers are supporting us to the best of their ability. Now it's the state's turn to help our taxpayers."

Osten said that, from her perspective as a state senator, the designation "allows you to see trends, to see what programs will result in real jobs for real people, to make sure the state is putting the dollars in to help those programs out."

In Sprague, the paper packaging industry was hit hard during the recent recession and two of the town's three mills have closed. Osten said that state funds have been channeled into green technology improvements at Amgrath, a packaging and design firm, which has a higher profit margin than the two closed paper mills did. A solar-energy system company will replace the lost tax revenue from the paper mills, she said.